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From: Exodus 3:1-6, 9-12
God Appears to Moses in the Burning Bush
[9] And now, behold, the cry of the people of Israel has come to me, and I have
seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. [10] Come, I will
send you to Pharaoh that you may bring forth my people, the sons of Israel, out
of Egypt.”
[11] But Moses said to God, “Who am I that I should go to Pharaoh, and bring
the sons of Israel out of Egypt?” [12] He said, “But I will be with you; and this
shall be the sign for you, that I have sent you: when you have brought forth the
people out of Egypt, you shall serve God upon this mountain.”
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Commentary:
3:1-4:17. This account of the calling of Moses is charged with theological con-
tent; it gives the features of two protagonists (Moses and God) and the bases
of the liberation of the people by means of wondrous divine intervention.
In the dialogue between God and Moses after the theophany of the burning bush
(vv. 1-10), the Lord endows Moses with alt the gifts he needs to carry out his mis-
sion: he promises him help and protection (vv. 11-12), he makes his name known
to him (vv. 13-22), he gives him the power to work wonders (4:1-9), and he desig-
nates his brother Aaron as his aide, who will be his spokesman (4:10-17).
This section shows how God brings about salvation by relying on the docility of a
mediator whom he calls and trains for the purpose. But the initiative always stays
with God. Thus, God himself designs the smallest details of the most important
undertaking the Israelites will embark on—their establishment as a people and
their passing from bondage to freedom and the possession of the promised land.
3:1-3. The mountain of God, Horeb, called in other traditions Sinai, probably lies
in the south-east part of the Sinai peninsula. Even today shepherds in that region
will leave the valleys scorched by the sun in search of better pasture in the moun-
tains. Although we do not yet know exactly where Mount Horeb is, it still had pri-
mordial importance in salvation history. On this same mountain the Law will later
be promulgated (chap. 19), in the context of another dramatic theophany. Elijah
will come back here to meet God (1 Kings 19:8-19). It is the mountain of God
“par excellence”.
The “angel of the Lord” is probably an expression meaning “God”. In the most
ancient accounts (cf., e.g., Gen 16:7; 22:11, 14; 31:11, 13), immediately after
the angel comes on the scene it is God himself who speaks: since God is invi-
sible he is discovered to be present and to be acting in “the angel of the Lord”,
who usually does not appear in human form. Later, in the period of the monar-
chy, the existence of heavenly messengers distinct from God will begin to be
recognized (cf. 2 Sam 19:28; 24:16; 1 Kings 19:5, 7; etc.).
Fire is often a feature of theophanies (cf., e.g., Ex 19:18; 24:17; Lev 9:23-24;
Ezek 1:17), perhaps because it is the best symbol to convey the presence of
things spiritual and divine transcendence. The bush mentioned here would he one
of the many thorny shrubs that grow in desert uplands in that region. Some Chris-
tian writers have seen in the burning bush an image of the Church which endures
despite the persecutions and trials it undergoes. It is also seen as a figure of the
Blessed Virgin, in whom the divinity always burned (cf. St Bede, “Commentaria
In Pentateuchum”, 2, 3).
All the details given in the passage help to bring out the simplicity and at the
same time the drama of God’s action; the scene is quite ordinary (grazing, a
mountain, a bush...), but extraordinary things happen (the angel of the Lord, a
flame which does not burn, a voice).
3:4-10. The calling of Moses is described in this powerful dialogue in four stages:
God calls him by his name (v. 4); he introduces himself as the God of Moses’ an-
cestors (v. 9); he makes his plan of deliverance known in a most moving way (vv.
7-9); and, finally, he imperiously gives Moses his mission (v. 10).
The repetition of his name (”Moses, Moses!’’) stresses how important this event
is (cf. Gen 22:11; Lk 22:31). Taking one’s shoes off is a way of showing venera-
tion in a holy place. In some Byzantine communities there was a custom for a
long time of celebrating the liturgy barefoot or wearing different footwear from nor-
mal. Christian writers have seen this gesture as being an act of humility and de-
tachment in the face of the presence of God: “no one can gain access to God
or see him unless first he has shed every earthly attachment” (”Glossa Ordina-
ria In Exodum”, 3, 4).
The sacred writer makes it clear that the God of Sinai is the same as the God of
Moses’ ancestors; Moses, then, is not a founder of a new religion; he carries on
the religious tradition of the patriarchs, confirming the election of Israel as people
of God. Four very expressive verbs are used to describe this election, this choice
of Israel by God: I have seen..., I have heard..., I know..., I have come down to
deliver (v. 8). This sequence of action includes no human action: the people are
oppressed, they cry, theirs is a sorry plight. But God has a clear aim in sight—”to
deliver them and to bring them up [...] to a good and broad land” (v. 8). These two
terms will become keynotes of God’s saving action. To bring up to the promised
land will come to mean, not only a geographical ascent but also a journey to-
wards plenitude. St Luke’s Gospel will take up the same idea. (cf. “The Navarre
Bible: The Gospel of Saint Luke”, pp 22). God’s imperative command is clear in
the original text (v. 10): “...bring forth my people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt”.
This is another way of referring to the salvific event which gives its name to this
book; according to Greek and Latin traditions “exodus” means “going out”.
3:11-12. In reply to Moses’ first objection about his sheer inability to do what God
is asking of him, God assures him that he will be at his side and will protect him
—as he will help all who have a difficult mission of salvation (cf. Gen 28:15; Josh
1:5; Jer 1:8). The Blessed Virgin will hear the same words at the Annunciation:
“The Lord is with you” (Lk 1:27).
The sign which God gives Moses is linked to his faith, because it involves both
a promise and a command: when they come out of Egypt, Moses and the people
will worship God on this very mountain. When this actually happens, Moses will
acknowledge the supernatural nature of his mission but, meanwhile, he has to
obey faithfully the charge given him by God.
Moses’ conversation with the Lord is a beautiful prayer and one worth imitating.
By following his example, a Christian can dialogue personally and intimately with
the Lord: “We ought to be seriously committed to dealing with God. We cannot
take refuge in the anonymous crowd. If interior life doesn’t involve personal en-
counter with God, it doesn’t exist—it’s as simple as that. There are few things
more at odds with Christianity than superficiality. To settle down to routine in our
Christian life is to dismiss the possibility of becoming a contemplative soul. God
seeks us out, one by one. And we ought to answer him, one by one: ‘Here I am,
Lord, because you have called me’ (1 Kings 3:5)” (St. J. Escrivá, “Christ Is Pas-
sing By”, 174; cf. “Catechism of the Catholic Church”, 2574-5).
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Source: “The Navarre Bible: Text and Commentaries”. Biblical text from the
Revised Standard Version and New Vulgate. Commentaries by members of
the Faculty of Theology, University of Navarre, Spain.
Published by Four Courts Press, Kill Lane, Blackrock, Co. Dublin, Ireland, and
by Scepter Publishers in the United States.